1UP COVER STORY | WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 10 | THE ESSENTIAL 100, PART THREE

1UP's Essential 100, Part Three

We edge closer to the top in our countdown of the 1UP's community picks for most important games ever.

We've passed the halfway mark in our countdown of the 100 most important video games of all time, meaning that this week we'll be recounting the back half of the top 50. Now we're in the same territory we covered in our Essential 50 series nearly 10 years ago -- though you'll definitely find this list is not at all the same as the original. Time has marched on since then, bringing new ideas, new franchises, and new directions to the medium and the industry. While you'll definitely see some overlap with that older list, you'll also find new selections that we didn't even consider a decade ago.

Of course, the biggest difference -- as we've mentioned before -- is that the Essential 100 doesn't simply represent the 1UP editorial crew's opinions. We are not proclaiming these selections from on high, but rather worked in tandem with you the reader to build a democratic and comprehensive list. Needless to say, as with all such lists, these picks are completely subjective. You may not agree with every selection. You definitely won't agree with the placement of certain titles. And since we're a U.S.-based website with a predominantly North American audience, the list omits plenty of titles that would be on a European or Japanese-based list. I don't think a single Spectrum or C64 title made the list, although games like Elite definitely deserve to be on here!

But so it goes. No list is perfect, but I think that as the week progresses (and once we tackle the top 25 entries a couple of months from now) you'll agree the 1UP community's collaborative picks make for as good a list as anyone could hope for. So pull up a chair, settle in, and prepare to read 25 more excellent retrospectives on the most important games of all time -- as chosen by you. -- Jeremy Parish

And in case you missed them, be sure to catch up on the first 50 entries in this series with our previous Essential 100 cover stories: Entries 100-76 and entries 75-51.

Random Reply

I am kicking myself for having not played a Zelda game other than the original (usually on Gameboy). There is Mario and then there is Zelda. I actually thought Zelda was the main character at 1st until I found out it was Link.

woo woo woo u know it

Really?

Perhaps i'm in the minority but for me any "top games" of all time list that has Chrono Trigger on the wrong side of the top 20 of all time....is not worth seeing...what the top 20 is according to them. Of course...that's how opinions go huh? lol sigh... :)

This isn't a "Top Games" list.

It is a list about the most essential and influential games of all time. It focuses on games that shape the video games made today and how we think about what exactly a video game is. Some of these games weren't even fun when they came out, but their influence on the philosophy of game design and what people expect from video games today is what puts them on this list.

I have a feeling

That it's going to be really boring in the next set. Just like the character and game battles at gamefaqs, it'll come down to games we've all played/seen/read about before. Hell, even the comments will be the same ol' whining about how a game should be ranked higher than it is even though it was put to a vote.